JOB DESCRIPTION

View Vacancy – AUH – UKVI Entry Clearance Officer (EO)

The British Government is an inclusive and diversity-friendly employer. We value difference, promote equality and challenge discrimination, enhancing our organisational capability. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds. We do not discriminate on the basis of disability, race, colour, ethnicity, gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, age, veteran status or other category protected by law. We promote family-friendly flexible working opportunities, where operational and security needs allow. The FCDO operates an agile workforce and to facilitate this, you may be required to undertake other duties from time to time, as we may reasonably require.

Job Category

Other British Government Departments (Partners across Government, including UK Visas)

Job Subcategory

UKVI (UK Visas and Immigration)

Job Description (Roles and Responsibilities)

The British Embassy Abu Dhabi has vacancies for seven (7) Entry Clearance Officers (ECO) under UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI). This is for a fixed-term contract for one (1) year with the possibility of renewal depending on performance and operational requirements.

The objective of this role is to provide high quality, efficient and non-discriminatory visa application processing, which meets the published standards and to provide all customers with a firm, fast and fair service.

The FCDO is an inclusive and diversity-friendly employer. We value difference, promote equality and challenge discrimination, enhancing our organisational capability. We do not discriminate on any basis, including categories protected by law. In keeping with the FCDO’s commitment to disability inclusion in the workplace, hiring managers must incorporate the principles set out in the FCDO Disability Confident scheme job applications in the CBS recruitment process. Our CBS are recruited by Missions in-country in line with local employment laws.

Duties and responsibilities:

• Assess and resolve visa applications within agreed benchmarks. You must be able to analyse information, reach a decision quickly, and be able to justify this decision both orally and in writing. Entry Clearance Officers are expected to meet challenging daily workload targets.
• Ensure that all correspondence is considered, and reports or replies prepared within target times, in clear and concise English.
• Deal professionally with all callers to the Visa Section, whether on the telephone or in person, ensuring that people are treated fairly and responding sensitively to differences. The above list is not exhaustive and the job holder will be required to be flexible and take on other ad hoc tasks as required, including participating in the Embassy emergency planning and any response to a crisis.

The above list is not exhaustive and the job holder will be required to be flexible and take on other ad hoc tasks as required, including participating in the Embassy emergency planning and any response to a crisis.

Key behaviours required:

• Delivering at Pace: Take responsibility for delivering timely and quality results with focus and drive.
• Making Effective Decisions: Use evidence and knowledge to support accurate, expert decisions and advice. Carefully consider alternative options, implications and risks of decisions.
• Working Together – Form effective partnerships and relationships with people both internally and externally, from a range of diverse backgrounds, sharing information, resources, and support.

Eligibility

• The successful applicant will be required to obtain the necessary security clearance. Higher clearances can be granted only to certain nationalities. For this reason, candidates must be of British, American, Australian, Canadian, New Zealand or EU nationality in order to gain the level of clearance required for this role.
• Applicants must be available in a full time capacity to work on site at the British Embassy Abu Dhabi – these are not part time positions or available for remote working.
• Employment of successful candidates will only be confirmed following the successful completion of the Entry Clearance Officer training course to be held tentatively in Abu Dhabi in January/February. You must be available to attend as no alternative course dates can be offered

 

Essential qualifications, skills and experience

The ideal candidates should possess the following qualifications, skills and experience:

• A proven track record of working quickly and reliably with little supervision, meeting challenging targets on a daily basis.
• Capable of making quick decisions in accordance with set rules and able to show that these decisions are fair and just on all occasions.
• Excellent organisational ability, with proven ability to manage, plan, and prioritise tasks and workload. Ability to work well under pressure in a target driven environment.
• Ability to work effectively in a team environment.
• Fluent in English, both written and spoken. Ability to express ideas and messages clearly and concisely.
• Good working knowledge of IT, including Microsoft Office applications (Teams, Word, Excel).

Desirable qualifications, skills and experience

• Arabic, Farsi, Hindi or Urdu language skills.

Required behaviours

Delivering at Pace, Making Effective Decisions, Working Together

Application deadline

28 September 2025

Grade

Executive Officer (EO)

Type of Position

Full-time, Fixed Term

Working hours per week

40

Duration of Post

12 months

Region

Middle East & North Africa

Country/Territory

United Arab Emirates

Location (City)

Abu Dhabi

Type of Post

British Embassy

Number of vacancies

7

Salary Currency

AED

Salary

16,024

Type of Salary

monthly

Start Date

5 January 2026

Other benefits and conditions of employment

Working hours and remuneration:

The Embassy aims to offer an attractive working environment and remuneration package for this role, which includes 25 days of leave per annum (calculated pro-rata).

The salary for this role is AED 16,024 per month.

There are no other allowances payable as part of this package. No accommodation and relocation expenses are payable in connection with this position.

This role is for a full-time employment, on a fixed term contract basis for one (1) year, subject to six (6) months’ probationary period. The contract may be extended, subject to satisfactory performance and on on-going business requirement.

The Embassy is open from Monday to Friday from 0700 to 1800 hrs. The Employee’s normal weekly working hours are forty (40) Monday to Friday (inclusive). This is inclusive of one-hour paid rest break for each five (5) hours worked; the timing of the rest break shall be approved by the Employee’s Line Manager and in accordance with operational requirements.

The Embassy has an active Learning and Development Committee, and the whole of Post is committed to providing the time and resources for staff to develop personally and professionally. The 70/20/10 learning and development model is applied in a flexible manner, with extensive informal and formal opportunities readily available.

The successful candidate will be required to transfer their visa under the Embassy”s sponsorship.

Additional information

How to apply:

Interested candidates must ensure that the following is fully completed:

1. Fully completed online application form which must include:
2. Fully completed education details and employment history
3. Fully completed experience, professional skills and behaviour-based sections in the online application form. Please ensure that your application is authentically written based on your own experiences. If AI tools are used, their usage must only be limited to specific tasks such as ensuring formatting consistency and keyword relevance. The core content, personal narratives, and responses to behaviour and skill-based questions must genuinely reflect your professional journey, experiences, and achievements. We place great importance on originality and individual effort throughout the application process. Any form of plagiarism will result in immediate disqualification.

Please note: It is mandatory that all applicants complete the online application form including the employment and educational details, technical, skills and experience sections and the behaviour-based questions. Applications that are incomplete in any respect will not be considered whilst shortlisting for the next stage.

Closing date for applications is at 23:55 UAE local time on 28th September 2025.

Applications received after the stated deadline will not be considered.

Internal candidates (i.e., those employed by the British Embassies in Abu Dhabi & Dubai) applying for this position are advised to inform their current line managers upon submission of their application.

Process:

The recruitment process, including security clearance, is expected to take around two to three months. The security clearance process includes checks available in country and with UK, dependant on the security level required for the role and the candidate”s profile and UK footprint. You may experience some delay in the progress of this recruitment campaign, and we are working hard to minimise any disruption.

Due to the large number of applications, we receive, only those shortlisted for the next step of the recruitment process will be contacted.

The start date mentioned in the job advert is tentative and the successful candidate will be required to undergo security vetting procedures before employment can begin. Any offer of employment will be subject to the candidate achieving suitable clearances.

Appointable candidates who were unsuccessful may be placed on a ‘reserve list’. If during the reserve period of 6 months the same or a largely similar role becomes available, that role may be offered to the second or subsequent candidate.

The FCDO operates an agile approach to delivery. To facilitate an agile workforce, you may be required to undertake other duties from time to time as we may reasonably require. The British Embassy Abu Dhabi is an equal opportunities employer, dedicated to inclusivity, a diverse workforce and valuing difference.

Please be aware that you will only be able to apply to vacancies for Country Based Staff roles with the British Government through this official tal.net site (operated by Oleeo). Jobs may be advertised on third party websites, however our adverts will always link back to the official tal.net site. If you complete and send an application through any other site, we will not receive it.

Level of Education: Bachelor Degree

Work Hours: 8

Experience in Months: No requirements